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ecclesiastical writers who lived from the Edict of Milan up to the fall of the empire are distinguished by several characteristics that give them a place apart in the history of Christianity. Two great facts govern this period. Whilst the Roman Empire, under the repeated blows of the Barbarians and under the weight of its own corruption, falls in ruins, dragging with it in its fall pagan idolatry, the Catholic Church, purified by persecution, enriched with the good, the true, and the beautiful that it has gathered in its inheritance from the Greco-Roman world, organizes itself to civilize the barbarian world. The first of these facts forms the general framework of this period. The second fact constitutes a more interior and more profound work accomplished by men of science and virtue who applied themselves to the development of dogma, moral, and the ascetic life of Christianity, and who have given their name to the two centuries that have been rendered glorious by their works-the Age of the Fathers of the Church.

The patristic literature of the fourth and fifth centuries is particularly fertile. In every branch it is cultivated with an indefatigable activity. Apologetics, polemics, Scriptural exegesis, dogmatic theology, moral, asceticism, history, and sacred poetry are developed with equal ardour and success. From the day of the Constantine peace, when the material welfare of the Christian community seems henceforth assured, when the fear of persecution is definitely laid aside, cultured minds lend themselves with the most eager curiosity to the great religious speculations elaborated by the Alexandrian school. To utilize the language and the philosophical concepts of Greek science in order to formulate the sublime mysteries of faith; such is their great ambition. In the East, Athanasius, Basil, Gregory, and Cyril analyse the Divine Substance, elaborate a science of God and of Christ; in the West, Ambrose, Jerome, Hilary, and Augustine, seized with a passionate ardour for moral and disciplinary questions, work to construct a science of man and of the Church. A broad current of ideas, moreover, flows between the Greek and the Latin world. Athanasius, Jerome, and Hilary are the providential bonds of union, whilst Augustine constructs a powerful synthesis of all. It is through him that the whole intellectual work of the Ancient Age is to be transmitted to the Middle and Modern Ages.

A special feature of the patrology of the fourth and fifth centuries is that it possessed a more universal character than any other movement of Christian science. Before Athanasius, religious literature, at first Jewish, then Alexandrian, had been almost exclusively Oriental; after Augustine it will have its principal development in the West.

So immense has been the work of the Fathers, that by them the dogmas of the Trinity, the Incarnation, Redemption, and Grace have been almost completely elucidated, and the great Councils of this period have only to promulgate their infallible definitions from them, and expose the most subtle sophisms of heresy by their means. The Age of the Fathers was the age of the great heresies. It seemed that God, who desires the development of His Church until the end of time, should wish, at the same time, to accomplish it always by a struggle. During the age

of the bloody persecutions, the first pontiffs, by their martyrdom, had cemented the movement of the expansion and the organization of the primitive Church, whilst another kind of martyrdom was reserved for the Doctors who succeeded them, namely, that of having to defend inch by inch, against sophisms and blasphemies, through persecutions and calumnies, the Church attacked in its most essential dogmas, and calumniated in its purest moral. But from this crisis they see Catholic dogma emerge triumphant and rejuvenated.

The march of events in this volume comprises three phases. These phases form the subject-matter of three parts. From 313 to 379, under the Emperors, who at one time protect it, and at another persecute it, the Church affirms at Nicea the contested articles of faith, and the Fathers energetically defend this faith against the last assaults of pagan error, and against the attacks of this semi-pagan error which is the doctrine of Arius. It is the end of Paganism. From 379 to 395, whilst Theodosius undertakes and completes the protective policy of Constantine, the Fathers profit by the imperial favour in order to combat and unmask the most diverse and most subtle forms of heresy. It is the triumph of Christianity as the religion of the State. Finally, from 395 to 476, when the rivalry of Constantinople with Rome prepares the future schism of the East, and the successive attacks of the Barbarians weaken the Empire of the West, the Church, more and more liberated from the imperial protectorate, and no longer relying except on its own strength to defend its dogma and convert new peoples, looks with confidence to the future.

The enormous labour of the author of these volumes is well repaid by the wealth of erudition he has accumulated in the five hundred pages of each volume and by the success he has achieved in writing one of the most critical and scholarly histories of the Church.

M. R.

SAINTS OF THE EUCHARIST. By Isabel Thornton. London: Burns &

Oates.

THE stories of the lives of the Saints are so many documents in which the Gospel of the King of Saints is translated into holy action. The Church regards these narratives as a kind of sacred scripture, and does not scruple to place them in the Matins Office between the Lessons of the Old and of the New Testaments. That Catholics should take a deep interest in these lives is, then, a matter of course. Indeed, a great revival in this matter seems to be one of the features of modern times. Catholics seek for models and exemplars among the saints whose conditions of life correspond somewhat to their own, and derive guidance and strength from the story of their lives. There are no more fascinating lives than the lives of those who have been conspicuous for their devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. That is quite natural. All the sweetness, grace, and beauty that surround the Eucharistic Lord seem to be reflected in the lives of His ardent lovers. What more beautiful guides could be found for the lambs of Christ's flock in those happy days of early and frequent Communion and of wonderful devotion to the Blessed Sacrament than the saints of the Eucharist? What better way to inflame their young hearts with sweet love for the Bread of Life than by making them familiar with the beautiful stories of those favoured ones of Christ? The authoress of the Saints of the Eucharist dedicates the volume to children preparing for their First Communion.

The stories are told in a simple manner that makes them arresting as well as interesting, and they are well calculated to foster devotion and to be a help to holy living. A note of sincere and tender piety sounds throughout the whole book that is neatly brought out and enriched with some quaint but beautiful illustrations. Perhaps the prettiest of the stories is that concerning the young martyr Tharcisius in the days of the Christian persecutions. It is a beautiful picture of the circumstances and trials of the early Christians, and cannot fail to make a deep impression on the youthful mind. Altogether, we have nothing but admiration for this delightful book, and hope it will find its way into the hands of the younger generation. M. R.

THE ASSUMPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. By Rev. Myles Ronan, C.C. Irish Messenger Series.

THIS little book deals with a subject on which, as far as we know, no 1d. book has hitherto been published in Ireland, namely, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It sets forth the Doctrine, the History, the Scriptural Figures of Mary's Assumption, and the connexion between the Divine Maternity and the Assumption; it points out the Church's tradition on the subject, as contained in the writings of the Fathers and sacred Liturgies of the Church; it emphasizes the special prerogatives of the Feast and concludes with a Novena of Prayers for the Feast itself, which is likely to prove not the least attractive part of the book. It is a higaly useful and valuable addition to the list of books on the Blessed Virgin, and with them will, we trust, find a place in all our church bookboxes during this month. J. M'D.

THE INWARD GOSPEL. By Walter D. Strappini, S.J. London: Longmans, Green & Co.

THIS is a little volume of familiar discourses originally addressed to a small audience who follow the Rules of St. Ignatius, yet, on account of the principles set forth in them they will be found useful to others whose lives are guided by the Institute of St. Ignatius, and, inasmuch as they are but expansions of some points of the inward teaching of Our Lord, may furnish matter for reflection to any Christian. The titles of the discoures will give an idea of the attractive and interesting matter dealt with. They are: Charity well disciplined; Priesthood and Sacrifice; the Gift of Sickness; The Hand of God; 'The grain that dies'; His Personal Magnestism; A Working Partnership; The Vine, an Allegory; A Message from God; The Gold of Silence; A Helping Hand.

The book is admirably suited for the time of retreat. It is saturated with beautiful and inspiring thoughts that cannot but be useful to preachers of the Gospel, as well as being interesting and suggestive to the ordinary reader. It reveals much profound reflection and keenness of vision as well as a thorough acquaintance with the workings of the human heart. It is permeated with sound common sense that makes the discourses all the more attractive and worthy of our deep consideration. It is written in a crisp, clear style, that wastes no words. It is pithy, to the point, forcible, arresting and instructive. The discourse on Charity is one of the most beautiful in the book. The author is original in his ideas and in his method of treatment. Many wholesome thoughts and lessons might easily and advantageously be drawn from it. They remind us of the principles laid down by Thomas a Kempis. We cannot refrain from quoting a few sentences: 'The understanding of others is a large part of charity, whether such understanding is intuitional, or the fruit of patient observation. Do not accustom yourself to be too critical. Faults are obvious enough, yours included, even when you yourself do not see them. If we always knew how kindly blind others are to our glaring faults, from very shame we should affect so much blindness when the many defects of human qualities in other men are placed before us. All of us have opportunities for thoughtful consideration for others, little misunderstandings we can smooth out of irritating prominence, the soft answer which turns the edge of sharp criticism, the silence which is often kindlier than flowing speech.' The whole book is one that will well repay us for our close reading of it and bring great profit to ourselves and to our neighbours.

...

M. R.

BOOKS, ETC., RECEIVED

America: A Catholic Review (July).

The Ecclesiastical Review (July). U.S.A.

The Rosary Magazine (July). Somerset, Ohio.

The Catholic World (July). New York.

The Austral Light (June). Melbourne.

The Ave Maria (June). Notre Dame, Indiana.

The Irish Monthly (July). Dublin: M. H. Gill & Son, Ltd.
The Catholic Bulletin (July). Dublin: M. H. Gill & Son, Ltd.

The Month (July). London: Longmans.

Études (July). Paris: 12 Rue Oudinot (VII).

Revue Pratique d'Apologétique (July). Paris: Beauchesne.
The Dublin Review (July). London: Burns & Oates.
Revue du Clergé Français (July). Paris: Letouzey et Ané.
The Fortnightly Review (July). St. Louis, Mo.

The Lamp (June). Garrison, N.Y.

Missionary Record of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate (July). Dublin: O'Brien

Bros., College Street.

Gay.

Gay.

The Annals of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (July). Cork: Guy & Co.
Per Crucem ad Lucem. Par Cardinal Mercier. Paris: Bloud et Gay.

Les Catholiques au Service de la France. Par Paul Delay. Paris: Bloud et

L'Église de France durant la Guerre. Par Georges Goyau. Paris; Bloud et THE ETHICS OF GAMBLING

BY REV. E. MASTERSON, S.J.

SOME years ago I read a letter that had been written by a Protestant lady to a Catholic Archbishop, with the object of getting his views on the morality of gambling. Everywhere she went she found the gambling spirit very prevalent; so she said. She had made inquiries as to the attitude of Catholic priests towards it, and had been told that their condemnation of gambling, far from being absolute, was hedged in by many limitations and conditions. She discussed the ordinary objections made against betting, and she rejected them all as not being sufficiently convincing. Yet she herself condemned betting and gambling absolutely; her reason being that, whereas every transaction into which money enters ought to be advantageous to all the parties concerned, no one but the winner reaps advantage from the gambling contract. The Archbishop's reply was brief, but quite adequate to the occasion. It went somewhat as follows: 'Dear Madam,-If you kindly send me a cheque for £1,000, I will very willingly accept it, without giving you any equivalent whatever.'

This answer was not merely adequate. It was even triumphant; because, if the Archbishop had accepted the logic of his lady correspondent, he would have had to admit, if he wished to be consistent, that no one could accept a money gift. A gift is a veritable contract. When it is made in money, it is a transaction into which money enters, and yet only one party to the transaction profits by it: he who receives the gift.

If, like those priests to whom our feminine moralist referred, I do not condemn the gambling contract absolutely, I am still very far from recommending gambling as a counsel of perfection. If we consult our own experience, we can all easily recall unhappy instances of men who, by their habits of gambling, brought disgrace and ruin on themselves and their families. In certain circumstances

FIFTH SERIES, VOL. X-SEPTEMBER, 1917

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